Review: Into the Woods
@ the Bridge Theatre until May 30th 2026
Director: Jordan Fein
Writers: Stephen Sondheim & James Lapine
Cast: Jamie Parker, Katie Brayben, Chumisa Dornford-May, Kate Fleetwood & Jo Foster
Though I’ve listened to multiple cast recordings over the years, until last night my only real experience of Sondheim’s dark fairytale was the dreadful 2014 film adaptation. As such, I wasn’t sure how I would respond to this, though my expectations were high. Jordan Fein, whose recent successess include the delightful Fiddler on the Roof at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre and, later, the Barbican, and Oklahoma! at the Young Vic, is a highly capable director of musical theatre and the cast he’s working with here is stacked with talent. The Bridge Theatre, likewise, has a wealth of high-quality productions under its belt, rarely putting a foot wrong in recent years, and Into the Woods itself is full of bangers, so even the worst production of it would surely have some merit.
Well, consider my expectations met and exceeded. Fein’s production is a glorious ride through a bizarre, deconstructured crossover of various Brothers Grimm fairytales that is rich with warm humour. Given its origins, it’s no surprise that the musical has the trappings of a pantomime, but Fein tackles these with a playful sincerity, while the set design and staging, though not immersive in the traditional sense - and certainly not in ways the Bridge Theatre sometimes offers - feels like an embrace of the audience and makes the stage feel huge and all-encompassing, which heightens the sense that the woods are a place of peril and mystery. The production beats along pacily, and the balance between silly whimsy and a rather bleak tale about unintended consequences is very well handled.
The ensemble is magnificent, too, and everyone is on excellent form. Kate Fleetwood’s witch, Jo Foster’s Jack and Jamie Foster’s baker are real highlights, and so too is Michael Gould as the story’s narrator, and they are all ably supported by a cast whose vocals capture the glorious, magical essence of Sondheim’s songs. “Agony”, “Last Midnight” and the witch’s “Lament”, to spotlight just a few examples, feel so effortless in the hands of this cast, and the choreography of the musical numbers imbues it all with an infectious, joyful energy that is well contrasted with the darker material, particularly in act two.
The second act, though shorter than the first, feels a little baggy, and the rendering of the giant is a little lazy, but these are minor quibbles. Fein’s production is a delight and is elevated by a cast who treat the material with the regard that it deserves.
Score: ⭐⭐⭐⭐